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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. object — an aim
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. firm — a company
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. cell — in biology
  7. bound — tied together
  8. bound — certain
  9. firm — steady
  10. object — a thing
  11. last — finally
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. firm — decided
  14. rest — a break
  15. fork — in a road
  16. rest — what's left
  17. rest — what's left
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. bound — obliged
  20. cell — a phone
  21. deal — to handle
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. last — to go on
  24. object — to protest

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com